Assegai vs Butcher / DHF / Mazza etc

I’m new to 29er in December and generally I’ve found 29ers find more grip than 27.5 tyre for tyre. E.g my 2.3” dhr2 on the back definitely finds more drive up greasy up hills than the 2.3” 650b one.

I ran a Hillbilly 2.6 for the slop and the thing was awesome – better than the 2.6 650b one was because it worked better at trail centres as well as being epic in the slop.

I swapped it out for a butcher 2.3 T9 and it’s been ok but in dust in hardpack / loan yesterday in the FOD it washed out on me when I totally didn’t expect it. Perhaps I didn’t have the bike cranked over enough to get the edges to bite in but it did get me wondering. In the shop I was debating between the 2.3 and the 2.6 and I kind of wish I’d picked up the 2.6 now.

I’m loathe to buy another tyre so will probably just stick with what I’ve got dor a bit and see how it goes – but I’ve always been curious about the Assegai. Looking at the stats though it’s 1260g even in Exo+ casing (would want the 3c Maxx Terra compound) which would be the heaviest front tyre I’ve ever run. The butcher 2.6” grid trail is 1050 ish. Assuming they have a similar casing size is this just a reflection of how big the knobs are on the Assegai?

In the summer I generally want something reasonably quick rolling but with decent cornering grip. I’m riding more and more of the Risca off piste and have the Afan Masts in the summer so I wouldn’t want less grip than the likes of a butcher / dhf / Mazza type tyre on the front.

Any thoughts?

Michelin Wild Enduro Front or Maxxis DHR2 also worthy of consideration?

Or a good old fashioned Magic Mary?

it washed out on me when I totally didn’t expect it.

The previous generation Butcher was notorious for this.

When I looked last time I couldn’t find a 29er wild enduro or magic Mary in stock – nor a Verdict etc – everything winter enduro like was out of stock except the hillbilly. So I went with that. If I’d had that on yesterday I reckon it would have bitten through that dust and gripped but it would have been slow rolling everywhere else.

I wasn’t a fan of the dhr2 on the front when I tried it – but that was also a 2.3”. Maybe it’s the narrower squarer profile I’m not a huge fan of. I’ve got a 30mm inner rim width.

You didn’t wash out at Dowies yesterday by any chance 😉

I run a Mazza front on my trail bike, works well, run a DHR2 on the ebike and again, does the job, but reality is that these are all kind of intermediate tyres, so for stuff like the dust bowl that is FoD at the moment, they will have wash out moments.

The Assegai is something i’ve never used, a couple of guys i ride with swear by them, another one or two ditched them due to weight and rolling resistance, again they’re an intermediate, pretty much every tyre is a balancing act, otherwise we’d all be riding maxx grip shorty’s/assegais/DHRs.

The simple answer is because Butchers (and well, basically all Specialized tyres, are shyte).

The weight difference you are referring so is more of a reflection on the carcass of the tyre & its puncture protection. The newer EXO+ has put a little bit more weight on to improve that side of things & I’m pretty happy running one on the front, even when racing now without a fear of flatting.

The Assegai is a great front tyre though, it’s in my all time top two, only really beaten by the DH22, which you won’t be interested in if 1260g worries you, as they are 1500g.

I’ll happily trade a bit of rolling speed for outright grip on anything other than a short travel bike, so the Assegai wouldn’t bother me at all, in fact I wouldn’t run the MaxxTerra, I’d pretty much only run the MaxxGrip.

Finding tyres at the moment however, is challenging. I would consider the Wild Enduro Racing Line, now they have made it into a decent carcass & compound, as before it sat in the Specialized tyre camp.

@argee – close but no cigar. Staunton – I think on a trail called Bridget – the 2nd easy left hand bend – I wasn’t even going fast 🤷‍♂️

Maybe if I’d been going faster I’d have been concentrating more and more consciously weighting the front wheel / have had the tyre tipped over further.

I’d probably just pick up an Assegai if it wasn’t for all the comments about rolling resistance and weight.

I think I need to try the butcher a bit more at Risca and see how it handles all the loose dust and gravel there in the steep stuff and then have a think.

It’s always a compromise – I don’t want some slow draggy thing that sucks the life and soul out of me but equally want decent grip in most conditions.

I’ve been very impressed with the Hillbilly 2.6 in dry conditions – yes it’s not got as much grip as something like a DHF when the ground is perfect but as soon you go past hero dirt to loose dust and marbles the spikier tread wins out again. The other thing I’ve noticed is that when it does let go by surprise it has a habit of catching itself. It also rolls far quicker than you’d think. So if your one isn’t worn out I’d stick it back on!

I could be tempted to stick it back on if the butcher wipes out on me again I guess. It’ll be horrific on the really easy local hardpack I suspect but I can use my hardtail for that which has a dhf / slaughter combo on it which is perfect for local stuff.

To add – my butcher is the new T9 compound – the Hillbilly is the T7.

Butchers have almost put me off buying a couple of Spech bikes I had out on test.
One of the worst tyres I’ve had the misfortune to try.
Just bang a Maxxgrip Assegai on and stop worrying about weight.

“ It’ll be horrific on the really easy local hardpack I suspect”

It won’t. It’ll almost certainly roll faster than the T9 Butcher.

Assegai is a race winner !!!

When it’s fitted correctly 😉

I’m pretty sure the 2.3 T9 butcher rolls faster than the 2.6 T7 Hillbilly – I’ve definitely ridden them both on the hardpack. In the winter slop I just gurned through the Hillbilly rolling resistance because it’s so good on the stuff where you need lots of grip. I guess I was just hoping to get something good enough for the summer that does things up a bit. 2.5” DHF is usually that tyre – maybe I shouldn’t have been so tight and just bought one for the same of £15-£20.

close but no cigar. Staunton – I think on a trail called Bridget – the 2nd easy left hand bend – I wasn’t even going fast 🤷‍♂️

Yeah, those trails are loose and dusty just now, you can take the easy corners for granted until you get a little movement that brings you back, i’d have to say for Staunton i’d be listening to HobNob and getting an assegai MaxxGrip, the loss of a bit of rolling resistance against the benefits of the grip for those Staunton trails is well worth it, trails like Bunker/Widowmaker/Bridget/etc just have endless dust bowls, roots and rocks.

@weeksy – maybe my butcher is fitted the wrong way round 🤔

I don’t think the Exo+ Assegai is 1200g+ minus packaging, I have one fitted on the front (29, 2.5) and it wasn’t noticeably heavier than any Exo Shorty or DHF I used previously. I know there was chat of the Exo+ seeing an update but not sure that applies to this model yet.

I know I have been an advocate for the T9 Butcher….but I am still concussed from a crash with it… I am fairly certain I hit a hole though, not washed out. Rider error.
I think the tyre is good though but if you need a spikier tyre for slop/deep dust etc, then the Wild Enduro works well for a light tyre.

I’m currently running a set of DH22/34’s on my pedal bike, as I can’t get hold of Maxxis in the compound/tread I want anyway & we did a few runs at Staunton yesterday on the steeper stuff (can’t turn down laps on Inbetweener when it’s that dry) & they are like cheating.

Yes, they roll a bit slower & maybe take a few more % effort to pedal, but I’ll take that 🙂

go for the assesgai 3c 2.5 WT over the wild enduro, switched tyres last week on my chameleon, had been running the Draggy WE for 18months, the assegai was like a breath of fresh air on my first climb, and grips just as good if not better for me.

Definitely give an Assegai a whirl. Real confidence booster for the front end. I’ve done over 2000km of single track on one and only last week had my first almost wipe out on a dual slalom track. As for draggy, I wouldn’t worry on the front.

I’m riding more and more of the Risca off piste and have the Afan Masts in the summer so I wouldn’t want less grip than the likes of a butcher / dhf / Mazza type tyre on the front.

I rode these places last year and will ride them this year too hopefully, tyre combo wont change from Magic Mary Super Trail front and Big Betty Super Trail rear, great grip, good braking and good rolling from the BB on the rear. (Both 29 x 2.4)

rockthreegozy
Full Member
I don’t think the Exo+ Assegai is 1200g+ minus packaging,

1206 here, minus packaging, and this is the older Exo+, so the revised carcass will be heavier

Yeah the Assegai is mental heavy for what I want it for. I’ll keep a lookout on eBay and see if I can pick up a nearly new / removed from new bike one of either those or DHF I think. At least if I hate it I haven’t paid £65 for it that way.

I picked up a brand new Assegai on here last week for £35 in maxx terra 29.

I just ordered a 29×2.5 assegai from merlin for £49.

I would consider the Wild Enduro Racing Line,

Been super keen to try these.

DHR2 DD Maxxgrip up front for me (3c on the back), find it brakes better than an assegai and works better in the looser conditions, It also rolls faster.

Have a mate on Butcher T9’s and he rates them as well, he’s no slouch on a bike either.
Grid trail is a bit flimsy, espiecially on the rear, but grid gravity is spot on.

It’s funny with casings how different people find them.

I’m going to jinx myself now and say I’ve never flatted a tubeless tyre. I pinch flat punctured tubes tyres from time to time before going tubeless for context.

This is on Exo / grid / grid trail / snakeskin apex in the main. The only burlier tyre casing I’ve had is a tough wtb trail boss for Antur / North Wales rocky stuff.

The butcher grid trail I’ve got feels quite sturdy side wall wise to be fair to it. Was running 23 psi front / 24 psi rear at Staunton. No inserts.

Actually – the exo forecaster / grid slaughters have been used with a Rimpact in them on the back. One of the inserts in the Slaughter still looked new when it came out but the one in the Forekaster looked like it’d had some hammer.

Aha – found a 29×2.5” DHF in exo / 3c Maxx Terra flavour for £40 plus p&p on eBay. Looks a bit funky as it’s the 20th anniversary edition so has a different font. Going to give that a whirl as a fairly known quantity.

I like 2.6 butchers on the front. Quite a lot of people on here slate them.

I’ve only had two problems with them. One was the tyre burping at pace. I think the pressure was a bit low. Its not happened again  after I check the pressure before each ride.

The other was a very landing front wheel first into a head sized pointy rock. I don’t know if any tyre I’ve ridden would have faired any better.

FWIW, I found the Assegai unremarkable and could never trust it as much as the DHF. I found its edge grip less confident.

I was literally riding better as soon I swapped the DHF back on.

Despite that, the DHF is a compromise tyre for dry conditions, because:

when the ground is perfect but as soon you go past hero dirt to loose dust and marbles the spikier tread wins out again.

In the blown out worst excesses of summer, I’d take a Magic Mary or shorty over the DHF.I find the magic Mary is not so bad on the dry in the front. I may soon settle on one for year round use tbh!

Happy with the DHF choice in light of all of the above / experiences I think. As soon as the weather starts to get murky Sep / Oct the Hillbilly will be straight back on.

Couldn’t find a Magic Mary in 29er / addix soft plus they made a lot of the casings ludicrously heavy in the last update. I’ve been perfectly ok with both the plain snakeskin addix soft 2.3 and the snakeskin apex addix soft 2.6 in 650b size. No need for a front tyre much above 1kg for my riding in terms of strength of the sidewalls.

“ I find the magic Mary is not so bad on the dry in the front. I may soon settle on one for year round use tbh!”

It’s the only front tyre a lot of my mates use – whatever, wherever! My local dirt rarely manages more than a week in optimum conditions and then it gets loose and wants a toothier tyre for max grip.

Some of the trails I’ve been riding have been quite hard on tyres I think. My brand new dhr2 on the back from December is already looking a bit secondhand. I think it’s a mixture of trail centre plus the hard ground at Cwmcarn – been there a lot already this year.

Chief – out of curiosity – 2.4 or 2.6 and what are y’all running on the back for those same conditions?

So far I’ve been running a dhr2 2.3 on the back – great all round tyre.

Although I do have a 2.6” rekon to try on the bike that’s getting the new DHF 2.5”. Never tried the Rekon but told its got better braking grip than say a minion ss / slaughter / rock razer but doesn’t roll as fast. Not as much grip as a dhr2 but rolls better. Gone for exo+ with a Rimpact in when I fit it. See how it goes I guess. If it’s crap then back to the dhr2 probably.

Dhr2 is 2.3 is surprisingly quick (for its type) and grippy, but it lacks volume for high speed chunder and I wore one out in just under one dry season.

Dissector seems to perform about the same speed and grip wise as the dhr2 2.3, but has a touch more volume. It still wears quickly and I can’t seem to find them in DD in the UK.

I tried the dissector but preferred the slaughter tbh. Didn’t love it for whatever reason.

Interesting, given that we ride similar stuff.
*Goes to look at the slaughter*

EDIT: ooh no! Not for me. Looks like the vastly overated Schwalbe RockRazor.

Slaughter seems to be discontinued in 29er – otherwise I’d have one on the Sentinel right now instead of having bought a Rekon. Got one inmym hardtail though – it’s defo faster than the Forekaster it replaced but corners better.

I tried both the Assegai and Butcher round Innerleithen last week. Very dry mixture of rock / root / dirt. Butcher was better than expected out of the mud where I found the Assegai nothing special. A few uncomfortable moments not really pushing hard at all. They are on the rental fleet there if you need to give one a spin and happen to be nearby.

Magic Mary for me on anything, DHR in second place.

Maybe the hype and hearing everyone rave about the Assegai put it in a tougher spot but I had the same prior to trying a Mary too. That over delivered for me.